Does Skill Make You a Better Blackjack Player?

If you want to improve your blackjack game, forget about lucky charms, and practice the skills you need. It is true that a little good luck can go a long way, but 21 requires more than just luck.

It is a game that takes skill to master and win. The best way to pick up and hone the skills you need to be a better blackjack player is to learn basic strategies, which you can always supplement with more advanced strategies as your confidence and ability goes from strength to strength.

Why Blackjack Strategies Work

The reason you can use strategies with great success when playing blackjack is all down to the most basic tools of the game, namely the playing cards. Different versions of online blackjack use different numbers of decks.

Some use 1 deck, while other versions may use 4, 8, or more decks. However many decks are used in a game, players know that each deck contains 52 cards, of which 4 are Aces, 12 are court cards, and the rest are the numeric cards.

This means that, once the first cards have been dealt, there are only so many other cards that could be dealt. This paves the way for all sorts of strategies that could help you beat the dealer by making the best decision for the hand you were dealt.

Blackjack Strategies to Get You Started

We have got a few basic strategies that are sure to put you well on the way to sharpening your blackjack skills and becoming a better player.

If your hand is valued at 13 points or more, and the dealer’s holding a 2 or a 3, you should stand. You should also stand if you have a 12-point hand and the dealer has a 5 or 6, or if you have a hand worth 17 points or more, and the dealer has a 7 or higher.

If you have Aces and 8s, or two 2s, 3s, 7s, or 9s, you should seriously consider splitting your hand. However, you should avoid splitting 5s and 10s.

If your blackjack hand is valued at 8 points or lower, you should hit to improve your total.

If your hand is worth 10 or 11 points, you can double. That is when you double the bet you placed, and take an extra card to improve your hand total.